


Moving On

by NightwingNinja17



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-14 05:20:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28665369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightwingNinja17/pseuds/NightwingNinja17
Summary: Milah discovers that Killian was in the Underworld and decided that she wants to help find him. Not for just her sake, but also for Emma's sake does she decide to help. What will she find? Will she be able to move on after doing so? Or will she continue to remain down here?
Relationships: Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Emma Swan, Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Milah
Comments: 3
Kudos: 12





	Moving On

Hello all! I am back with another Once Upon A Time story! This time, it is based on the idea that what if when Emma rescues Killian from the River of Lost Souls chained up thing, what if Killian was reunited with Milah instead of her being pushed over the edge?

Although this will be a slight AU, there will still be spoilers for OUAT Season 5 Episode 14 Devil's Due. So if you haven't watched the show or have seen Season 5, be warned! :)

Milah's POV:

When I found out that Killian was here in the underworld, it startled me to my core. I never thought in the hundreds of years I had been living down here that I would ever get the chance to see my friend, my family, again. The anticipation of the idea of seeing him again sent my head spinning.

Then I met Emma and found out that the young lady had been with Killian and with my son. What sort of convoluted story did they ever whip up? To find out not mere moments later that she herself wasn't dead and that she had come down here herself to find Killian as well was a shock. No one who ever entered the underworld had ever been alive. They were usually down here because they had died.

Or they were down here because Hades wanted them down here.

And now they were on a boat that was leading them into the heart of Hades' main territory. His lair waited just ahead of us looming like the stony caverns that encompassed it.

The whole boat ride to Killian felt like it was taking an eternity. I had no idea if it was because of the idea of seeing my former lover again, or if it was the fact that my former husband sat behind me. I didn't know what to think of this.

However, my excitement to see Killian again, to tell him goodbye was something I looked forward to. I wished that I had the chance when Rumple had confronted us all those years ago, but due to the nature of my death, I didn't get the chance to. Now, he was one handed thanks to the wrath of the man sitting menacingly behind me. I still hated him for everything he put me through. There was nothing that was going to change that.

My mind the wandered to the reason I decided to tag along.

It was to reassure Killian that my sacrifice, that my death, wasn't the end. I wanted to encourage him that he could move on, that he should move on.

My thoughts then wandered to other things. I longed to give him a hug, to reassure him that his efforts to help me weren't in vain. Those were the reasons I didn't wish to voice in front of Rumple. Emma, I wasn't sure of, however, if she had caught Killian's eyes she must have been someone special. If Killian was to move on without me, then let it be with her.

"We're here." Rumple suddenly announced which startled me slightly. I turned my head to view the man behind me and tried not to look annoyed.

Once the ship docked, I followed Emma's lead and stood to exit the boat.

"This is it. He's down here. I feel it." Emma made two big strides forward before stopping.

"I'm coming with you." I didn't have a clue as to where the bravery came from. And yet I moved with great urgency up to Emma and made sure the other woman knew that I was serious about coming with her.

"I don't think it would be a good idea..." Rumple butted into the conversation.

"I don't care what you think, Rumple." I spat out the venom that I felt toward this man. I then turned to Emma and added determination to my expression, "I have my reasons. Please let me come with you."

"Alright." Emma turned to face Rumple with a serious look of her own, "Make sure the ship is still in one pice or else you will have a lot to answer for when we return."

"Acknowledged." Rumple nodded toward the ladies in front of him before turning his gaze to the boat's belly.

"Let's go, Milah. I'm sure Killian would love to see two familiar faces."

I smiled and then followed Emma down a long, stony tunnel that wound its way into the heart of Hades' territory.

The silence that followed was truly sickening. Neither myself or Emma dared to talk for fear of what we might find on the other end. Many scenarios ran through my head. The worst one being that we would find Killian dead or it was a trap for the both of us.

What struck me as strange was the audible sound of something ticking on the other side. It echoed throughout the hallway as if the very walls themselves were made up of clocks.

"What is that sound?" She voiced her thoughts to Emma as they trudged through the seemingly never ending tunnel.

"I don't know. But I don't like it. Let's walk a bit faster." Emma turned to look at me with a nervousness I hadn't seen from her this whole time.

And we walked faster. The only sound echoing through the hallways now was the click clack of our shoes hitting the stone floor underneath our feet.

The closer and closer they got to the other side, the faster her heart began to race. What would they find there? Would they even find Killian or was this something hades had conjured up to keep them far away from the man both herself and Emma loved?

Her questions were soon answered when Emma ran into the open, lit up door way at the end of the tunnel. We saw a round platform sitting in the middle of a massive cavern and in the middle was someone hanging from the ceiling in chains.

"I wonder who that is." We both took a good look at the figure before Emma seemed to recognize who was on the other side.

"Killian!" I heard her shout before I saw what it was she was seeing.

My heart sank whenever I emerged and saw Killian chained up to the ceiling, slowly being lowered through a hole in the metal flooring beneath his feet to a pool of water that came from the river of lost souls. The green glow of the water cast an eerie glow on everything around it. It even added to the sickly look that I saw on Killian.

"We need to get to him and fast." I shouted to Emma who whipped her head around to turn her beautiful green eyes in my direction.

"I think it would be better if only one of us went over at a time." She gestured to a metal pole that jutted out from the stone beneath us and out to the platform beneath Killian, "and that's our best bet across."

"Agreed. You go first." I pointed forward to the platform, "I'll follow right behind."

She nodded and then made her way over to the edge as she quickly walked across the thin piece of metal separating us from Killian.

I held my breath. It was an excruciating scene to watch. Killian was slowly being lowered into the pool of green water with every click of the chains. I watched as she wobbled every now and then as her balance wavered. It finally registered in my head that the ticks we had been hearing in the tunnel was the tick of the winch keeping Killian aloft in the air. The sound reverberated around us louder than it had been before.

"Emma!" I called out to her when I noticed that she had swayed so badly that I feared she would be the one to fall into the river and not me.

"I'm alright!" She yelled back out to me and took several more confident strides forward before she finally hopped onto the platform on the other side. She then turned around to face me and waved a hand for me to come forward, "It's your turn!"

It took me much longer than it had her to get across and yet I did. I then rushed over and helped Emma after she had pulled Killian away from the hole and back onto the platform. My heart broke as I listened to his pained groans as she did so.

"Help me get the chains off." Emma pointed to the chains wrapped tightly around Killian's arms and torso. I swiftly found where the chains that had been keeping him hanging met the chains keeping him still had been tangled. I firmly and yet gently untangled them from each other and unwound the massive pieces of linked metal.

No sooner had I started the job, Killian was grasping for Emma. She pulled him upright which both helped me remove the chains and simultaneously hampered my efforts. Yet I didn't let this frustrate me.

"Oh! Killian!" My eyes darted up to see Emma's hand hover of the injuries that littered the left side of Killian's face and neck. She then rested her cheek in his forehead. A sight that melted my heart faster than butter that I would get on toast from time to time at the diner. My heart broke for him. I could hear his labored breathing, his struggles to stay awake and his attempts to stay focused on the blond that is right in front of him. I wanted to reach out and help wipe away some of the tension, but I knew that it wasn't possible without hurting him.

"I told you to let me go." His voice was so feeble, so frail as if one wrong move and he would crumble, "You shouldn't be here. Nobody should."

"I never listen." I heard Killian chuckle which then made me smile.

"You're impossible." Killian's breathy voice suggested amusement.

"And you love me for it." Emma smiled back at him to which I could only assume he was smiling back. I then watched her embrace him. He snuggled into her embrace like Emma was Killian's only life line. I smiled when Emma's tear filled eyes met mine. The many emotions that filled both of our eyes as we observed the man we both knew and loved.

I then watched Emma. Her love for him was so obvious as she just carefully held him close and kept him upright. He seemed to take in her scent, her features as he grasped at her with the hand that he still had. I had never seem him get that close to anyone before and that was a sign of the love that they had for each other.

Emma then looked up at me from over Killian's shoulder and gestured for me to come closer. I watched as she pulled away from the embrace and had Killian look her in the eyes again.

"Are you still able to talk for a bit? There's someone who wants to see you." Emma waited for the response before gesturing to me again to come around so he could see me.

"Yeah...I think so." Killian's voice was no more than a mere whisper, but it was there which gave me much joy to hear from his own lips that he wanted to see me.

Emma adjusted her position to where she was now on her knees. She then moved behind Killian keeping him upright while I sat down in front of him and helped him adjust his own position without hurting him.

I felt him freeze however when his one good eye opened and his blue eye stared back at me. I could see the many emotions run through his gaze. I watched as he looked me over as he carefully took his good hand and gently grabbed hold of my right arm. He adjusted his stance just slightly before staying still one more time, looking over me like I was a ghost.

"Hello Killian." I just sat there with a smile on my face. He returned it with a small one of his own. He remained silent after that. He must have been processing all the information his eyes were seeing and in his injured state, it must have been taking a while. The tale tell sign that he was wanting to say something came in the form of him opening and closing his mouth.

"Milah? I...is it really you?" His tired voice finally echoed out of his mouth.

"It's really me Killian." I got all choked up at seeing him again. I was angry at Hades for putting him through so much. I was angry at myself for letting him get away all those years ago. However, I was happy that he had found someone else to love. I was happy that he had finally moved on from what had happened. I was so happy in fact that I felt a tear run down my face.

"H...how?" Killian reached up and wiped the tear off my face. As he touched my skin, I could feel him trembling. With my hand that I wasn't holding him up with, I carefully caressed his face where the least of his injuries resided. I could feel my smile grow bigger as I gazed upon his mangled form. He was just as I remembered him. Of course his hair was a bit longer and the lacerations did little to make him unrecognizable, but he was Killian. The same man I fell in love with all those years ago.

"I guess I had some unfinished business." I let loose an emotional chuckle, "What are you doing down here? I can't imagine the great Killian Jones suddenly succumbing to age."

He looked down to the ground looking a bit down cast. He suddenly gasped as if he was reliving something. Emma was soon right behind him, doing her best to calm him down and help him through whatever it was he was experiencing.

Once satisfied Killian wasn't going to die or pass out in front of the two of us, Emma stood.

"I'm going to go find a way out. I'll be back." Killian seemed rather worried when she left as if it was going to be the last time he saw her. Something must have happened to have him so concerned for her, outside the obvious beatings he had endured under Hades. I could see and feel his breaths quicken as panic took temporary hold over Killian's mind.

"Hey!" I softly shook him to get his attention again. I waited till his gaze had returned to me before I continued, "You're alright. No one is going to hurt you."

His breaths, though still swift, calmed down as he just watched me. He seemed to be taking in my presence. We sat like that in silence before he reached out and cupped my face with his good hand once more. He ran a calloused finger over my smooth and unblemished skin. I smiled at him which was reciprocated though it appeared as more of a grimace than anything else.

"Now, are you going to tell me why you're down here?" I lowered my head to catch his gaze which he had turned to his lap. He hesitantly looked up at me like he was debating within himself to reveal it to me.

"I...I sacrificed myself to save Emma." Those few words tore at me as if I was run through with a sword. In my short time of knowing Killian, I knew he had no selfish bone in his body, especially when dealing with women. He had the heart of a gentleman and that was one of the many qualities I hoped Killian still had within him.

"Oh.." I felt my voice fail me and thus my words became a whisper. He had sacrificed himself to save her. Much like he had risked everything to save me when Rumple came after him.

"The dark one...consumed Emma." He took some time before continued, "As it did I. The only...the only way that it could be freed from us both is that one of us sacrificed ourselves to...to...to get rid of the darkness for good."

"And you sacrificed yourself." My heart started to break.

"It was...the blade was..." Killian's breaths started to come in fast again. However, he was quick to calm them down, "It reminded me of when I lost my hand."

I quickly looked down and saw that his left hand was no longer in the sleeve. I gently reached out and into his sleeve to touch the now scarred over skin where his hand once sat. It was just the remains and seemed to be a reminder of what must have happened after I was killed.

"I...when did this happen?"

'Right after you died." There were no words needed to fill the void that I was feeling at that moment. Killian had lost so much. His life, his hands...his love. He deserved to be happy.

Silence hung between the two of us as we seemed to drink in the sight of each other. It was like we had never been separated for hundreds of years. I hugged Killian in a similar manner to which Emma had hugged him. I took great care in making sure my hands didn't touch the parts of him which were badly damaged.

"You need to get out of here." I almost thought I was hallucinating. Killian's voice was so soft, it felt like it was my imagination playing tricks on me. I pulled away from the hug and looked Killian in his blue eyes, "Leave me here and get Emma out of here."

"We aren't leaving you." I held him up by his shoulders and gave him a gentle shake, "We didn't come all this way just to leave you behind."

"But I'm not worth saving, Milah. I'm not worth the effort." I saw a tear fall down from his face. What happened to him that caused him to feel this way?

"You are worth saving Killian!" I cupped his face with my hands forcing him to look me in the eyes, "I don't know what happened after I saw you last, but from what I do know and the little bit Emma told me, you died a hero. You saved many."

"But I gave into the darkness. The da..." He choked on his words a bit. I leaned forward to rest my forehead against his. I caught his distressed gaze again and saw the anguish, the heartache and the anger all wrapped into one, "I was weak. I gave into the darkness when you died. I gave into the darkness and almost killed Rumplestiltskin when he killed you. Since then, I have killed so many in my quest to seek vengeance for your death, that I lost myself. I lost a part of myself that...that was honorable. The part of me that I know you fell in love with."

"Killian, I didn't fall in love with you because of your morals," He had lost so much faith in himself. Now it was my turn to give some of it back, "I fell in love with you, because you loved me so fiercely that you would do anything to protect it. To make me feel loved. You gave me that. I don't doubt for a second that it was hard for you to move past me. Believe me, I'm still struggling through that myself. But, you don't have to hang on to that baggage anymore."

Killian looked as though he didn't believe me.

"We all have our weak moments. The times where we aren't ourselves or what we want to be. But that doesn't mean you aren't worth saving. The best people are those who are flawed and learn from their mistakes. I know I certainly did."

Emma soon walked closer and was smiling sadly down at the scene.

"You have become a far better person that I could ever be. And its time you moved on past all the hurt, the anger and the fear and live you life again. Be that joyous, boisterous self I grew to love. Be yourself, because that is the best version anyone can ask for. Find something to live for one more time. And don't do it because I told you to." I leaned in close this time and whispered a sentence that I only wished him to hear, "Do it for Emma. She needs you."

I couldn't believe I was telling him this. Part of my own heart still belonged to the infamous Captain Killian Jones. That part of me wanted to tell him to stay here and live the life we both wanted. Together. But as I gazed upon Emma who had eyes for the same man I did, I saw her love for him shine through. I watched as she knelt down behind Killian and pulled him into a hug from behind him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and rested her head to his right side. He seemed to take in her presence like it was the warm light after a cold day. His breath

However, I saw the cogs turning in his mind, how he seemed to contemplate the words I was speaking. I could see the doubt overcome his precious features. He wasn't sure about this. Especially with seeing me again. I could see the conflict, the desire to be with the two women who surrounded him.

"You will not soil my memory by falling in love with another, Killian." I caught Emma's gaze and saw her surprise. I then turned my eyes to Killian who looked up at me with just the same amount of surprise as the woman behind him did, "In fact, I want you to love someone else. I want you to experience what we were going to do together with her."

Killian looked torn, but it seemed like Emma's quiet reassurances behind him seemed to help. He looked up at me and simultaneously leaned his head up against Emma's. He seemed to be holding back emotions. Finally, they seemed to break through as some tears ran down his face. He reached up and held Emma's hand which was draped over his right shoulder.

"I'm not worth saving. Not after what I did to everyone." Killian's voice was so soft, I thought I missed it.

"Do you think, for one moment, that if you weren't saving that I would have traveled all the way down here to save you?"

"She's right. We wouldn't have come if you weren't worth every bit of it." I caught his gaze and made sure he saw it. I carefully wiped the tears away from his face as he fought to catch his breath. He looked up at me with sadness and gratefulness all in the same expression.

"And you are worth so much more than what your past defined you. You may have been dark, but the darkness was using you. You aren't that man anymore. You are the man I fell in love with. You are the man we fell in love with. You are loved, you are cherished and I don't want a life spent away from you."

"May I?" I was asking permission from mainly Emma, but I also looked to Killian for permission. I didn't want what I was about to do to interfere with their own relationship, but I felt this needed to happen.

Emma must have seen what I was wanting to do. She smiled softly and pulled back her own embrace slightly before I moved closer.

"Killian, you are one of the best things that has ever happened to me. And I never got to tell you that before I died. I want you to know that I still love you. I know I can no longer be with you, but you still hold a special place in my heart. Live for the both of us. Live for her and most importantly live for my memory. Please." I leaned forward, reached out and placed both hands on the sides of his face and kissed him on the lips. He seemed to enjoy that as he leaned forward and closed his own lips around mine. I then pulled away and watched as his shocked expression was extrapolated by a blush.

"Alright." He whispered, "I will try."

"That is all I can ask for." I gave an emotionally fueled smile. Tears of my own fell down my face as I looked to Emma. She seemed to share the same emotionally fueled smiled that I shared. I returned my vision to Killian and watched as the weariness I expected him to have washed over him. He seemed to try not to be bothered by it. I looked to Emma who had started to stand.

"We need to get out of here. There's no telling how long it would take Hades to figure out our ruse."

I nodded and then stood myself. Or stand as much as I could with Killian still holding my hand.

Emma helped Killian up from behind while I helped him up from in front of him. Once he was fully standing, I watched as Emma helped him stay standing. He looked shades lighter than before. Once he was completely sure he wouldn't pass out in front of us, I moved in front of him to make sure that he didn't

The remaining minutes I had will Killian were the best I ever had. We didn't talk, we just walked. I helped Emma help Killian to remain upright, to make sure that he didn't pass out. We took small breaks. I watched his face. He was focused, but he seemed to revel in the presence of us both.

Once we made it back to the boat, Emma pulled Killian into it and helped him get settled. It was like watching a son and a daughter comfort each other as if one of them just had a nightmare. The nightmare was the torture in this case. I watched as Killian leaned heavily into Emma and how she let him. She gingerly touched his face and his hand and let him just relax after days of not being able to. I smiled at the sight. Killian truly trusted her and she him.

We finally made it back to the surface surprisingly without Hades ever discovering we were here. We got out of the boat and I knew this was my time to bow out. I took one look at Rumple before looking at Killian and Emma one last time.

"Thank you Emma for letting me tag along." Emma's soft smile reassured me that she loved me there as much as I loved being there.

"I can see why Killian loved you. And you're welcome. I couldn't have found him without your help."

I caught Killian's gaze and saw sadness within the one eye that wasn't swollen shut. I could tell the internal conflict that was residing within him.

"Killian, you'll be alright." I walked closer and took his good hand and clasped my two hands around it, "You will forever be in my heart. Goodbye, Killian."

I leaned in and planted a kiss on Killian's forehead, taking great care to kiss on skin not yet blemished by the scars and the new wounds. When I then pulled away, I watched his eyes search mine as if asking for permission. And then much to my surprise, he moved forward and planted a deep kiss on my lips.

"Thank you, Milah," His words were so soft, I thought I had imagined them, "I will never forget this."

And soon after that, Rumple poofed himself, Killian and Emma away.

As the day dragged on, I found out that Killian was eventually reunited with his friends and new family and I just bowed out. I watched from a distance as they embraced and cried that their friend was home. I stayed there and watched till they dispersed and I no longer could see them. I knew that he was in good hands.

And I was so glad that I was able to say one last goodbye with Killian. My reasons had been fulfilled and now, I could finally move on.

Thank you so much for reading this story! I really appreciate you guys taking the time tor ead this! :) Please leave a review! I would LOVE to know your thoughts on this story.


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